Sickness of love
by grimmjow Kurosaki Drake
Summary: Sasule falls sick on love and there's no cure Chapter one: For the Sasusaku month day 3: medicine.
1. Medicine

**Notes: For the Sasusaku month day 3: medicine.**

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He started coughing up Sakura flowers a few months after he came back to Konoha. He was sitting at Ichiraku, idly moving the noodles and broth around the ramen bowl with his chopstick as he heard his teammates chat with each other.

"I used to do so many stupid things, back in the day when I was in love with Sasuke." Groaned Sakura, forgetting the suffix she has related to his name for almost an entire decade.

"I did stupid things for you too, Sakura-chan." Laughed Naruto good-naturedly.

They carried on with superficial conversations, both members of team seven, sunny and bright as ever. Completely ignoring their dark, gloomy teammate desperately leaving the ramen stand in a hurry.

That night, he coughed and panted, screamed in agony until his throat was raw. Then, finally, threw up an entire dozen of bloodied pink flowers.

"What's this?" he asked to himself worried and sacred, hesitantly picking up the cherry blossom marred with his own blood with the tip of his fingers. As if the flowers were poisoned or something way worse.

The day after, Tsunade herself gave him his diagnosis, but not before every single medical staff in the building apart from Sakura did some sort of exam on him. "I'm going to cut the chase with this, Uchiha." She told him. "You have a very rare disease called Hanahaki. Only one person of every ten patients survive this."

He hummed his understanding, his shaking hands betraying the blankness of his stoic face.

"Is it treatable?" Asked the last Uchiha.

"Don't you want to know about the disease?" sardonic as ever. "What causes it?"

"Is it treatable?" he insisted.

"Yes, it is. But you're not going to like it."

"Just tell me what I have to do." Sasuke wasn't willing to allow some weird sickness be the thing that ends up killing, not after everything he survived up until now.

"Hanahaki is a sickness of the heart and the soul," explained Tsunade, professionally "Shinobi are more prone to fall from it, since it manifests as an alteration of the patient's chakra. Basically, your emotions are so disturbed that your chakra is physically manifesting in the form of flowers that take root on your lungs." The whole thing sounds like a fantasy, like the fairy tales his mother loved so much, when she was still alive.

"What kind of emotion…" He wondered out loud.

"Hanahaki can only be born by one emotion." Interrupted the sannin "unrequited love."

Sasuke accepted her words at once then. Aware already of the person at fault for his sudden sickness.

"What is the treatment, Tsunade?" He growled again, this time with wariness on his tone.

"The only known treatment for Hanahaki if for the reciprocation of one's love, or…" She stopped herself, biting her nail in a nervous habit.

"Or…" Prompted the heir of the Uchiha.

"Or for you to undergo a surgery to extirpate the feeling." She confessed.

"My feelings for…" He found himself without words for the first time in years "No, neither option is possible."

"I thought you would say that." Sighed the medic, closing her eyes, suddenly tired. "Let me prescribe you some medicine. It won't cure you. But it will ease the symptoms."

"Aa" Nodded Sasuke, his voice empty. "Thanks."

"It's supossed to hold your for a few years, but you are one of the Shinobi with the biggest reserve of chakra on the village." Stated the Hokage, just this time, not at all proud for the strength of her people. "And you know what they say about the Uchiha."

"No one loves like the Uchiha." He agreed with a sad smile marring his young, handsome features.

Late that afternoon, Sasuke left the hospital with a death sentence over his head. The flavour of blood and sickly-sweet cherry on the deep of his throat.

Cherry blossoms taking root on his heart.


	2. City lights

**Notes: For the Sasusaku month day four: City lights.**

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It's been three torturous months after his diagnosis. He's been spending his days throwing up flowers every morning (or every time he saw her, every time he even thought of her).

Chugging up tablets and water every few hours like hard candy.

He's been following Tsunade's every instruction, accepting fewer and fewer missions alongside team seven. Avoiding the hospital at Sakura's working hours. Exaggerating his cool demeanour every time either Naruto or Sakura stopped by his house to invite him to Ichiraku or any other of those inane social gathering they enjoyed so much.

They didn't need to know about the disease. Sakura didn't need to know.

She didn't need to know that her smile made it difficult to breath. Didn't need to know that every time she called him Sasuke, without the kun, the back of his neck hurt before a wave of nausea attacked him without mercy. That the taste of cherries made him gag. That he couldn't taste anything but sweetened blood for an entire week the last month.

She didn't need to know that he was slowly dying. That after so many years of her following him around and offering her heart, he was finally able to reciprocate. Even if it was too late.

Sakura didn't need to know and so, he decided to avoid her.

And it was working. He wasn't living, just surviving. But it was the healthier option for everyone involved.

Until eventually, he failed.

It was a dark night, only illuminated by the new lights Kakashi had installed at the start of the year as if they were a blooming new city and not the small, proud, ninja village he grew up in.

He had been feeling particularly horrible since he woke up late in the morning. Coughing up sakura flowers still attached to their branches, as if an entire tree was growing inside of him.

The medicine wasn't working in the way it should. Nowadays he could only feel pain and heartbreak.

He just wanted a little comfort. So he walked to the park near the village's entrance doors. To the exact replica of the bench that shared so many memories for Sakura and him.

"Sasuke?" He heard the voice he's been trying to avoid.

Sasuke stood up immediately at the sound. Sakura's face was worried, sad. Her green eyes brightened by the yellow lights of the village.

"What are you doing here?" he asked rudely, his voice hoarse. Sakura took some steps to approach him. Sasuke couldn't stop himself from doing just the same.

Attracted to her like a magnet, a negative pole seeking out her positive energy.

"I sensed your chakra, it felt." She hesitated. "It felt different. Are you okay, Sasuke?"

"Stop!" screamed Sasuke before doubling over in a fit of violent coughs. "Stop. Calling me Sasuke!"

"What?" She asked confused. "but that's your name, Sasuke. Here, let me help you." Her voice was kind, her hands soft as she took his own hand.

"You used to call me Sasuke-kun." Murmured the black haired Shinobi, two bloodied Sakura buds spilling from his lips. "You used to love me."

"What? There's something wrong with you, Sasuke. Please let me take you to the hospital." She pleaded.

Sasuke didn't have much time to answer her, maybe berate her for using his name like that again. Because without notice his vision went dark around the edges and then nothing. Just darkness.

He regained conciseness the morning after in what stemmed to be the hospital. If the waking sun outside of the white curtains said anything about his current location.

By his side, sitting on those uncomfortable chairs everyone hated so much, was Sakura. Sporting a worried expression on her face.

"Master Tsunade told me everything." She confessed. "Hanahaki it's a deadly disease. You should talk with that person who's making you suffer, Sasuke-kun."

"You're making me suffer." He stated.

"I just worry, Sasuke-kun. I don't mean to annoy you. I just want you to be happy."

"You're the one who's making me suffer, Sakura." Insisted Sasuke. Staring pointedly at her until he saw clear understanding passing her pretty green eyes.

"B-but. But I…" Stuttered the Kunoichi. "But I love you, Sasuke-kun." She said as if it were the easiest thing to say. "you know I love you."

The reaction was explosive, ragging, coughing fits born from the depth of his throat striked him as dozens of little Sakura flowers spilled from his mouth.

In an instant Sakura's small hand found the back of his neck. "It's okay, Sasuke-kun." She comforted him, holding him against her front. "this is just the disturbed chakra leaving your body. Everything will be alright." She instructed kindly "I love you. Everything will be alright."

Of course everything was going to be alright. Even as his lungs burnt, even as the whole structure of the little Sakura tree that had been growing inside him was now, violently leaving his body.

Sakura still loved him, and so, everything was allright with the world once again.

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**End notes: Finished and happy!**

**I hope you liked it and reviews are always welcome! 🌸**


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